June 28

HUMILITY MONTH: DAY 28: “Humility means accepting reality with no attempt to outsmart it.” ― David Richo

I read a couple of things this morning that spoke to me about this. Accepting the world as it is has always been a favorite topic of mine. Once I beat myself over the head long enough to get surrendered to the part of the Serenity Prayer where I ‘accept the things I cannot change’. I fully accept, today, the way my aging process is going, even the icky parts; the way all political campaigns and the country, world and Universe are being run by others; that death is not the end of life, but the goal if we make it a good one; and that there is NOTHING here but consistent, ongoing, forever change. So that means that there is NOTHING I can change except my attitude and behavior. And once I stopped trying to fight and change and outsmart life, I am as happy as a clam…until…I do it again…hahaha! Life has brought me to my knees a number of times and I always feel a strong sense of respect for a process that is so powerful that I cannot think my way around it…being so damned smart like I am and all! So I truly love this quote, probably one of my favorites for the month, because it gives me a glimpse of where I want to go. I say I want peace and serenity and love, but did not recognize that they all took me to the humility of letting go of the fight! The BB says we “have ceased fighting anything or anyone…”, and this is why. There is no battle to charge into, including the so-called battle for more money, property and prestige (ego!), the battle for staying young (yikes!), and so on and on. I am so happy to have accepted that I no longer need to fight for anything! It does not matter. At all. Ever. The life I am given is enough, it is much smaller than I thought it would be, but I love it. There is less of everything than I thought I needed, but it is enough. I am not “thinking” about doing things; I am either doing them, or I am not…all is well there. It is wonderful to have so much peace in my days and my life right now. There are no banners to carry, no wars to wage. I do what I do and I keep it to myself mostly. If I have a cause, I do what I can (my part) to further that cause; I cannot impose it on others. I can honestly say that I can see no revolution that I need to foment to win anything. I am grateful for that knowledge, perhaps better called wisdom. I have carried a lot of banners and jumped on my trusty steed with sword held high to ride off into battle, with very few actual results. My experience is that I have been able to do more with quiet determination to change something than with banners and TV coverage anyway. So I am glad to let go of that stuff. Today is a good day to stop the insanity of that life. And to recognize that I accept myself fully as I am…this is a goal, according to Lama Surya Das who says that the root of all compassion is self-acceptance and self-awareness…of course!